Chapter 21 Bates
I’m throwing her over my shoulder before she even registers that the ground beneath her feet has vanished.
Smacking her ass, hard, I feel the reverberation through her leggings against my palm.
“Hey! Let me go!” she shouts, trying to wiggle free, but she has no chance of escaping me now.
It’s far too late for that.
I smack her ass again, palming and massaging the tenderness away as I carry her up the stairs with ease toward my bedroom. “You made your bed. Now you can come in it.”
That doesn’t warrant any protest from the queen of the brats as I enter the room, flicking the light on with my free hand.
Shifting her weight into my arms, I toss her into the air, and she soars toward the bed, bouncing on the mattress as she lands, a big smile on her blushing face.
Propping herself up on her hands behind her, she leans back, looking up at me with a filthy gleam in her eyes.
A smirk tugs at her lips, and I can’t help but chuckle.
She’s just as bad as I am.
Maybe even worse.
My cock throbs as I take in the sight of her. Waiting. Eager. In my bed.
It’s all I’ll ever need. Her, just like this.
“I’m pretty sure it’s your turn for a fantasy,” she murmurs, adjusting her hips.
“Really?” I drag the word out, slowly closing the distance to the end of the bed, until my shins and knees are flush against the edge.
She nods, biting down on her smile—one of the sexiest fucking things she does. A small action that never fails to drive me insane, no matter how many times she does it.
Hooking my finger, I beckon her toward me, and she eagerly obeys, crawling on her knees until only inches remain between us.
“I know exactly what fantasy I want to enact right now,” I murmur, wrapping my hands around the swell of her hips, pulling her closer to me as I lower my head, smelling her sweet perfume.
“What’s that?” she whispers, her eyes hooded, pupils blown.
I can’t contain the smile growing on my face, taking over as time slows around us. Every moment of the past few months has led up to this exact second, when she finally accepts me for me.
Lifting one hand, I cup her jaw, tilting her head up. She parts her lips as I lean in. Tenderly, gently, I skim mine over hers, soaking up every second and dragging our kiss out as long as possible.
She holds her inhale as I softly seal our kiss. When I claim her lips once more, my brow furrows as uncontrollable emotion blooms in my chest, stretching out to every nerve in my entire body.
Gradually, as if the seconds tick by like minutes, I devour her, breathing her in as we melt into one another. Strength and control intertwine together in a beautiful display of passion.
We don’t fight one another for control; we’re both lost in the sensations, the caresses, and our wandering hands. Our unspoken love and possession are confessed in every deepening kiss.
I fist her hair at the nape of her neck, and she whimpers, the breathy sound driving me mad.
But I don’t want this to be rough, fast, and feral.
I want to take my time, savor every heartbeat in her chest, which quickens just for me.
Our chemistry united us, but that’s not where our relationship begins and ends. If she still doubts my feelings for her, she won’t by the end of the night.
We steal the breath from each other’s lungs, and the world around us fades away.
Her lips part, and I don’t hesitate, swiping my tongue along the seam and tasting her. She deepens it more, her hunger growing as our tongues tangle together.
“I need you,” she whimpers, and I nearly lose all control, my eyes rolling into the back of my head.
Settling my hands on her waist, I walk her back on the bed before easing her down, resting her head against the pillows. Her legs fall apart of their own accord, and I position myself between them.
When I look down at her like this, seeing how eager she responds to the real me, it’s fucking intoxicating. I’m barely holding it together right now.
Leaning forward, I prop my weight up on my left elbow, sliding my other hand around the curve of her head, and our lips find one another with ease.
Her fingers glide up my torso, greedy and fevered as she claws at the sweater. She tugs it up, and I let her pull it over my head, tossing it somewhere in the room.
She sinks deeper into the pillow to get a better view. Her eyes wander, hunger consuming her stare as it scours across my bare, tattooed torso, over every mound of muscle and sharp, defined line.
Her fingers skim between my abs, following the trail of hair that disappears beneath my pants. “You’re annoyingly hot. Like, stupid level of attractiveness.” Irritation twists her face, like my appearance offends her somehow. “You know that though. You don’t need me to tell you.”
My dick throbs against its restraints from her sassy tone. “Nothing compares to hearing you say it.”
She rolls her eyes.
Is she baiting me? Trying to bring out my rougher, dominant side? She’s not going to have much of a choice if she keeps it up. I’m going to snap soon, come unglued.
“You’re so goddamn beautiful, Serena.” My tone is genuine, warm.
Her lips purse, quivering with amusement. “I know.” She giggles, mocking me. “But nothing compares to hearing you say it.”
“So sassy.” I tease her.
She rolls her eyes, the big blues disappearing. A mischievous smile tugs at her lips.
I grab her chin, and her gaze widens with shock, a darkness stirring. “Don’t roll your eyes at me.”
She does it again, and this time, I lightly slap her cheek, enough to sting, but not hurt. The prickling sensation does little to stop her from doing it once again.
“You want me to be rough with you? Hmm?” I flatten my hand over her mouth, covering her from muttering a single word. “This is my fantasy, remember?”
Nodding, she taps my hand, and I give her permission to speak.
“Your fantasy is so”—her eyes twinkle—“boring.”
My fingers sink into her side, dancing as I tickle her. She erupts into a fit of giggles as I assault her side.
“Boring?” I taunt her. “Really?”
“Stop it!” she cries out, laughing, wiggling beneath me. “Stop!”
Her hips buck, grinding up into me, and my cock reacts like it hasn’t been touched by her in years. But I understand the pathetic need. My heart feels the same way when it comes to her.
“Stop what? Tormenting you? Being boring?” In one swift movement, I slide my hand from her side, back under her head. I wrap her hair in my knuckles, tugging sharply.
“Shit,” she gasps, her back arching and legs widening, welcoming me.
“Aww,” I mockingly console her. “Was that too intense for you?”
Challenge darkens her gaze. “Screw you.”
A rumbling chuckle vibrates out of me, from deep in my chest. With my other hand, I grab her wrist, sliding it under her ass, repeating the same step with her other one.
She looks up at me, confused.
Brushing a stray hair out of her face, I trace down her jaw. “If you pull your hands out, I won’t fuck you …”
Her lips fall apart, her pupils dilating even more. “Fine.”
I chuckle, pushing up from the bed, and shove my pants down. My dick springs free, and her eyes immediately find it, tracing every vein with her heated gaze.
My cock bobs in the air, as if her stare is a physical caress. A shudder runs through me, tingling at the base of my spine.
Wrapping my hand around the length, I pump it once, twice, rolling my head back as I revel in the otherworldly sensation.
When I look back down, I find Serena staring up at me, her tongue sticking out and begging to taste me.
Fucking hell.
I can’t slide into her mouth, no matter how badly I want to fuck her throat. If she so much as flicks her tongue across my tip, I’m going to explode.
Right now, there’s only one thing I want to do.
I flatten my hands on her thighs, pushing them as far apart as they can go. My gaze flicks up at her as I bunch the fabric between my fingers, readying to rip the leggings in two.
She figures out what I’m going to do, but even as her face twists with panic, I do it anyway.
“Bates, wait, no. I just got this pai—hmm.” She grunts in frustration, the sound of tearing fabric filling the room. Annoyed and agitated, she flattens her lips into a thin line, but she manages to remain still, her hands secured beneath her ass.
“Wow. I’m impressed,” I mutter with a smile. “No snarky comments or anything.”
Her lips twitch, and I chuckle, knowing she has plenty she wants to say. Her sweet aroma invades me as I lower my head, running my nose up her center.
“Fucking hell, you smell so good,” I growl, grabbing on to the delicate red lace. “These are so cute.”
She senses my intention far too late because I’m already shredding the lace, tearing it apart and exposing her pulsing pink pussy.
“Bates!” she scolds me again, but I just laugh.
Trying to calm herself down, rein in her anger, she inhales deeply, exhaling slowly.
Does she not remember taunting me just a few minutes ago? This is what she wanted. Maybe not this exactly, but this side of me.
“What the hell am I going to wear when I leave?”
I scoff, pressing a kiss into the seam of her thigh. “Who says you’re ever leaving?”
Another smart remark starts forming on her lips, but I cut her off, plunging my tongue into her soaking center.
“Ahh!” she cries out as I devour her shamelessly, sucking, licking, and nibbling.
I can’t get enough.
Suddenly, her fingers thread through my hair, and it takes everything in me to pull away from her pussy, enforcing the rule I set minutes ago. A grin breaks across my lips, and I meet her widened eyes, realization of what she's done dawning on her.
Desperation takes over her body. The pout of her lips. The upturn of her blue gaze. She’s surrendering, hands in the air.
I sigh, pushing myself up without looking her way. “Such a shame you couldn’t keep your hands in place.”
“Wait. Wait. Wait. Wait!” she begs, sitting up.
“Turn around,” I say sorrowfully, as if I don’t have a plan, as if this hasn’t been part of it all along.